Our expat sites

North America

Inke Hamkens was born in Hamburg and studied American, English and Italian literary sciences at the University of Hamburg, followed by the University of Vermont in the USA.

After school, she worked for several years in Hamburg, Mülheim, Düsseldorf, Bonn and Nuremberg as a PR consultant and freelance journalist before accompanying her family to Dallas in 2007. Today, she lives in Paris but has continued to collect memories of Texas. She wrote a book about her time there in 2016 called Termites, Tornadoes, Texas und Wir published in German.

1. Why did you move abroad?
We moved because of my husband's job offer.

2. How do you make a living?
At first I concentrated on being a mother of 3 in a foreign country. Quite a task to tackle, especially at the age my kids were at the time: 8, 6 and 2 1/2.

Nancy Swing, currently living on California's Central Coast with husband Russell Sunshine and five backyard deer who come and go as they please.

1. Why did you move abroad?
My husband and I were independent consultants working in developing countries, both long term (2 or more years) and short-term (6-8 weeks). Sometimes we were together, sometimes not. Among the countries where I worked for clients like the U.N., USAID and the World Bank: Egypt, Kenya, Guyana, Pakistan, and Somalia.(More)

Hi, I’m Clara Wiggins and I am from the UK. At the moment I also live in the UK but I was born in Cuba (to British diplomatic parents) and lived all over the world including the Philippines, Nigeria, Venezuela, Gibraltar, Jamaica, Pakistan and St Lucia. This year we are moving to South Africa.
1. Why did you move abroad?
As a child I moved with my parents – no choice! Then as an adult I realised the wonderlust was still there and I started out by going on a round-the-world trip on my own, which included nine months in New Zealand. When I returned to London I decided I wasn’t done with living abroad so I joined the Foreign Office and with that job moved to Jamaica. Here I met my husband and became pregnant with the first of our two daughters. We then moved with my husband’s job to Pakistan and St Lucia (and soon to South Africa). (More)

My wife and I have no fixed address. She’s American. I’m Canadian. I lived in Singapore from 2003-2014. That’s where we met. Now we travel around the world like a couple of nomads:

October and November in Mexico

January to March in Thailand

April to May in Malaysia.

The year after that? Maybe Argentina, Europe or Fiji.
1. Why did you move abroad?
I had bought a piece of oceanfront property on Vancouver Island. Before long, I realized that the costs of paying off the mortgage and building a house were recipes for mini, nightly aneurisms. So I took a teaching job at Singapore American School. Salaries were higher than what I was being paid in Canada. And the school covered accommodation. I thought I would spend just two years in Singapore. But from the first month, I knew I was going to stay a lot longer. I loved the city, the jungle, the travel and the people.(More)

My name is Yelena Parker. I grew up in Ukraine. I am American. At the moment I live in Tanzania and in July I will return to the United Kingdom, my latest country of “permanent” residence.

1. Why did you move abroad?
I moved abroad multiple times. 4 times, to be more precise. My first move was for pure economic reasons. I moved from Ukraine to the United States, straight to the heart of Silicon Valley to get an MBA. This was meant to open doors to gaining economic advantage.

Second time it was an expat contract, company transfer from the US to Geneva, Switzerland.

Third time, after our business was acquired, I got a local contract in the UK and moved to London.

Lastly, I am currently in Tanzania, volunteering and travelling for 4 months. Yes, I count it as an expat experience! 4 months of community work is truly plenty of time to absorb the local culture!(More)

Hi, I’m Apple Gidley. Of Anglo-Australian parentage born in London, England, educated in Asia, Australia and England, currently living in Houston, Texas.

1. Why did you move abroad?
To meet my father who was living in Kano, Nigeria when I was born. Mum and I joined him when I was a month old, had my shots and got my passport.

2. How do you make a living? Are you a fulltime writer?
Yes I’m a full-time writer but fortunately have a husband who subsidizes my writing, otherwise I’d be sharing kibble with Marley, my cat, whose favourite spot is on my desk. (More)

A mother of three, Homa S. Tavangar has spent her career helping governments develop globally oriented programs and advising businesses on how to thrive abroad. She has lived in the Middle East, East and West Africa, South America, and throughout the United States.
1. Why did you move abroad?
I lived abroad multiple times for studying and work, in Lima, Peru and Nairobi, Kenya. With my children we lived for a short time in the Gambia, West Africa, staying with expat family there and getting a taste of what life in such a different country would be like. It served as a great jump-start to my writing. (More)

My name is Laura Stephens. I was born in northeast England and moved south in mid-childhood to the outskirts of London. Ten years ago I was living in Singapore after which I repatriated to England for four years. Our second posting was to Houston for three years. My family are now back in Kent, England, just south of London.

1. Why did you move abroad?
I always felt I had missed out on seeing the world and the whole backpacking experience, and yearned to submerge myself in a different culture. Our posting to Singapore offered me a change of lifestyle, a break from my busy business life and a valuable chance to spend more time with my growing family.

Houston had always been on a potential hit list of destinations for myself and my husband as we liked the idea of living in America. As it transpired, the timing and situation I would find myself in were not favorable for me and impacted in a disastrous way – hence the memoir of the posting! (More)